Into The Mud
by Aiya Quackform
Summary: A young Poochyena pup is cast away from the sunlight, and forced to run from his hunters. COMPLETED ONE-SHOT. PG for mild violence and some dark themes.


Into The Mud 

_by Aiya Quackform_

_This is one-shot fan fiction, meaning that it is a short story and will not be continued._

"_Into The Mud" is rated PG for mild violence and some dark themes._

Mud cakes my golden fur. It sloshes beneath my paws, it grinds between my toes, and it fills up my lupine nostrils with its rotting odor. I can even taste its bitterness in my mouth. But still, I keep running. Through the water-swollen trees and around their roots I run. Their lowest branches slap my eyes; the plants pull at my hide. But still, I run. The rain from the dark sky above fills my eyes and soaks my fur. But I do not stop for shelter. She is hunting me, that human. I can hear her now, shouting at me, yelling at me to stop. But she cannot fool me. I know what she wants. Once she finds me, her prize, she will bring out a terrible ball. One that explodes with a blinding light and grabs hold of whatever it touches, trapping its victim in some place unknown.

Her yelling is far behind me now. My water-clogged ears can at least tell me that. Despite being young and masculine, my legs and paws ache, on fire and yet still cold from the wind and from the rain. I want to keep running, away from that dreadful creature, but my body collapses, giving in to sweet rest. All I want to do is rest.

My heavy eyelids close, giving me no time to protest.

I remember, I dream. My Mother cradled me against her soft, warm belly. The sun shone above us, bathing us in its delight. In a clearing somewhere deep in the forest we lounge, surrounded by the fragrant flowers and grass of summer. Her large canine body, so much stronger than mine, was covered with beautiful, soft silver fur. Long, black as night hair rolled off her back and flowed down into her tail. I thought she was a beautiful creature, so different from me. My clumsy paws of puppy-hood could scarcely keep up with her sleek, long, black legs. A brown star rested on my nose, and golden fur wrapped around my body. Mother said my fur reminded her of the glorious sun, but I thought her moon-toned fur was infinitely more beautiful.

We spent many days together, frolicking and napping under the sun. One day, however, a tall human came. His wiry grey hair extended out from his head in frightening sharp angles. His dark, narrow eyes glanced at my mother, but rested on me. My eyes had never seen a human before, but this one frightened me.

His lips curled back over jagged teeth, and from his pocket he pulled out a strange red and white ball. My Mother, who had been laying next to me, jumped up in front of me. The black fur on her back stood up tall, and she bared her sharp white teeth.

My blue eyes widened, I had never seen her like that. The man threw the small ball at me, and I squawked in fear. That same emotion, however, paralyzed my legs, and I just stood there.

The ball spun towards me, but with a powerful stroke of her dark tail, my Mother sent the ball back to its pitcher. The human growled at her, and she growled back. Every muscle in her body was quivering, ready to attack. In front of me she stood, unwilling to surrender me to this creature that had invited itself into our home.

The man sneered, and took another ball out of his pocket and flung it to the ground. A large purple-grey Pokemon that looked similar to a human appeared. Around its waist was a gold belt, and three short yellow fins stood on top of its head. Where it came from I was not sure, but my fear of those red and white balls was growing inside me, a seed spreading its insidious roots into my soul.

But my Mother was there; she would protect me. The other Pokemon hollered, "Machoke" was its battle cry. It charged towards us, my mother lunged at it. Her razor-sharp teeth sank into its throat, and it shrieked in pain. With its two powerful red-striped arms it ripped her away and threw her onto the ground. She landed with a yelp, and her cry shattered the glass of my heart.

The tall grey Pokemon gripped its bleeding neck, and looked at her with daggers in its eyes. The fear in me began to grow! But Mother stood up on trembling and weak knees, the strength of a mother protecting her son shining in her eyes. With a shout from its human master, the Pokemon drew its right fist back. Mother leapt at it, teeth again aimed at its throat. But that fist! It struck my Mother's chest in mid-leap, and the determination in her eyes was instantly shut out. She landed on the ground, her eyes closed, her muscles unmoving.

My screams did not wake her, but I saw that she was still breathing. That man grinned, not with pleasure or gaiety, but with evil. He threw the ball at her, and it exploded with light, sucking my Mother up into itself, away from me. Hot tears streamed down my cheeks and I started to run for the ball that had stolen my Mother, but that wicked man's eyes again turned to me.

The seed of fear blossomed in me, and with all its anger and all its torment, I ran.

My eyes fly open, adrenaline pumps through my veins. I am awake, in the present. Along with the rain hot tears drip down my cheeks. I got away from that man, the one that stole my Mother. But he got away with my soul. It had been weeks, months since that day. This golden fur of mine is not a gift as my Mother had called it, but a curse. I have been hunted. Every day, every hour, I have been hunted. I want to be alone! I want to rest. I want to sleep once again under the sun, with her.

I hear my current hunter. She is close. I push my unwilling legs under me, and lift up my water-heavy body. Again I run. My paws throb with every touch of the forest floor. My lungs burn with the dry cold of exhaustion. But that human will not touch me. I will not allow it to touch me.

My head feels heavy, the trees and plants and rain twist and contort around me. A vine hiding under the mud grabs me, and pulls me down to the ground. My body sinks into the soft earth, unable to answer my desperate commands to get up. The forest begins to swirl around me; dizziness invades my aching mind. Is this it for me? Will that vile creature find me and stuff me into one of those balls?

I hear a soft footstep in front of me. It is not the clumsy step of a human. I open an eye and look up. A beautiful creature stands in front of me. Tall and slender is its slightly canine body. Despite the rain, its fur is pristine. That wondrous fur flows over its nine tails, each soft and clean among the darkness of this night. At first that fur looks pure white, but it is really a lavender so pale that it shines like snow.

It looks at me with eyes as red as the flowers of summer, not with hate, or pity, or jealousy, or even love, but with understanding.

The tears stop coming as I look into those eyes, and I don't even care that my hunter is getting closer. A new emotion sparks within me. It is hope. For the first time I feel this wonderful and yet fragile emotion. Holding my breath, I look questioningly into those understanding eyes.

It speaks to me in a masculine, yet gentle voice. "You have suffered enough, young Poochyena. I will protect you now."

Those words sink into me, a welcome invitation amid so much pain. Unable to move or speak, a smile weakly makes its way to my lips, and I relax my muscles. For the first time in so long, I rest.

My savior gently picks me up in his mouth and with the swiftness of a raging wildfire takes me away. Away from my hunter, away from the humans, away from some of my pain, and into the hidden parts of the forest he carries me.

How I miss those days under the sun. But now, for me, a new life must begin. One day, however, I will find her again. Then, my Mother and I can frolic once more.

Author's Notes:  
Thank you for reading my short story, "Into The Mud". For me, it has been a wonderful experiment is creative and descriptive writing. I hope you enjoyed it! I would love to hear feedback from you, good or constructive, so please take a minute to tell me what you think!


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